Despite the best efforts of the Women Thrive community and the GROWTH coalition, the clock ran out on the Global Resources and Opportunities for Women to Thrive Act during the 111th Congress.  We remain committed to finding the best strategy to ensure economic opportunities for women around the world and are in talks right now about how best to build on our tremendous strides for 2011.

About the GROWTH Act

Investing in women's economic opportunity is the best way to end world hunger and end the global economic crisis. The Global Resources and Opportunities for Women to Thrive (GROWTH) Act was introduced in the U.S. Senate (S.1425) by Senator Richard J. Durbin (D-IL) and Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-TX) and in the U.S. House of Representatives (H.R.5191) by Congresswoman Nita M. Lowey (D-NY) and Congresswoman Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL).

How Would the GROWTH Act Empower Women Living in Poverty?

• Small Business: Help women living in poverty start and grow their own businesses.
• Property Rights: Help increase women's land and property rights.
• Wages and Working Conditions: Help improve women’s wages and working conditions in poor countries by emphasizing training and education.
• Access to Global Trade: Ensure that increased trade benefits women and families living in poverty.
• Local Women’s Organizations: Encourage U.S. agencies to recognize women and to work with local organizations that focus on women's needs.

Why Economic Opportunities for Women?

Investing in women is the surest way to end global poverty. In many poor countries, women produce the majority of the food supply and are more likely to spend their income on food, education and healthcare for their children. However, they face unequal barriers to lifting their families out of poverty: women often work longer hours in the lowest-paid sectors, earn less stable incomes, and receive less training and have fewer economic opportunities than men.